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We really need to dispense with the horsepower as a benchmark thing. It's not doing any of us any favors to be fixated on it. Lots of torque, way down low, is the best, way to go.

I know a pickup is a different animal, but Ford has been offering suicide doors on the Supercab pickups for decades. What the hell, besides a negative bias against Ford, would make anyone think they can't do it right on a luxury sedan? It isn't like it makes it a guarantee that Lincoln might not be able to do it, but good gracious the evidence is in their favor.

I bet Ford could actually make them able to close and align properly. The trim piece on the front part of that door looks lovely also.

This 2.0T is all new and for now is a Cadillac exclusive. More details will be released on it later, but I have an in with Cadillac and plan on getting the information ahead of time so I can release as soon as embargo is lifted. What he did tell me is that the engine is tuned heavily towards favoring low end torque (258lb-ft at 1500rpm!!) and they plan on making full use of the 9-speed gearbox. It should feel plenty fast. Just like my Encore has a rather pathetic 138 lb-ft but with very low gearing in first and second, it feels just as peppy in suburban driving as cars with 160 - 180 lb-ft. An additional 120 lb-ft and 3 additional gears with only marginally more weight... it'll be fine. Plastic Cladding.... only acceptable on European cars I guess. Look at all this plasticy plastic plastic.

HAPPY EASTER

I don't follow college basketball much, but am a fan of the U of M since I went there for grad school. It's weird, my high school, college, and grad school all have the same colors--blue and gold/yellow (or maize as they call it at the U of M).

Can't say I am not excited....Go Blue!!!!!

Just ham and the trimmings here...nothing crazy-with the fam... Happy Easter everyone!

Though it's not as bad as the weird trend of mixing normal front door handles with odd rear door handles, IMO...that I really don't like..the first 4dr Pathfinder in the 80s was the first I recall doing that, several cars and CUVs do it today..just seems like being different for the sake of being different... I love those '70s Continentals...

Sorry but the door handle placement made me think of this and now I cannot unsee it...

I sooooooo wanted to love the Continental. Correction. I love the concept! I would have found a way to trade-in the Acura for a Continental had it been like the concept. Now...well, Im keeping my Acura as I love that car to death, but, BELIEVE me when I say that the Fusion Sport COULD BE a replacement vehicle for me had I was trading in my Acura tomorrow. (That or the new Buick Regal GS. In my opinion, the Regal GS is the TRUE successor to the Acura TL SH-AWD, NOT the TLX that Acura is peddling now) Why do I view the Fusion Sport MORE than a Continental? I dont think the extra $$$ is worth it to buy the Lincoln. Either in MKZ form or in Continental form. Yes. Yes. The Continental blows the Fusion away in luxury, details and the like. I just dont deem the Continental worth that extra dough. If I spending that kind of $$$ on a sedan. Im skipping the Continental. Im going elsewhere. Cadillac, Buick, BMW, Mercedes, Audi... If I wanna stay with FoMoCo, and yes I dont have ANY dislike for FoMoCo, Im keeping the extra cash in price difference between a Fusion Sport and the Continental and maybe I go to Vegas and blow the difference there. Bet it all on black or something... Yes. the 1st generation Fusion and Milan were nice lookin' vehicles too. Aged quite well. There is a regular customer that comes to my restaurant who has a Fusion sport. Black. Good lookin' ride. 260 HP and 250 ft./lbs torque 3.5 liter V6. Naturally aspirated! I LOVE THAT! My Acura has got a 3.7liter V6 with 300 or so naturally aspirated horses and 270 ft./lbs... I love me some naturally aspirated V6s. Turbos and superchargers are cool and all. I prefer naturally aspirated. Looks something like this Great looks! The 2nd generation DOES have some issues. The GREAT thing is FoMoCo is ANSWERING and REPAIRING all problems. So...my wife's Fusion is basically FLAWLESS. No problems with it. The recalls get sent. The dealership repairs. There hasnt been ANY issues before the recall repairs. So we are all good! I applaud FoMoCo for stepping up to the plate. Its just that its costing them money!

If you were placing bets on who is more likely to get it right, would you bet on the 100+ year old company who has built suicide doors before or would you bet on the 15 year old company which still is using humans to manually drive the robots on their production line because they can't get them programmed correctly? THAT is all I'm sayin..

This is where I was getting at, without actually saying it. And...as 1st hand experience with a FoMoCo product, I found it ironic that we are laughing at Tesla....with a possible photoshopped pic, maybe not, but I having a 1st hand experience anecdote, we are using a FoMoCo automobile to use as an example of fine workmanship... Not that FoMoCo is shyte, but with this generation Fusion... YIKES! Now... I recommend the Fusion for ANYBODY to buy. Id even trade-in my Acura TL for a Fusion Sport, but laughing at Tesla using FoMoCo as an example of how to do...I dont think so, Tim!

I don't follow it either until it gets down to the end. Don't have the desire to sit in front of the boob tube with a bunch of grunting beer drinking ex-frat types or "pick up truck alumni" (term I learned while living in the South) commenting on the goings-on for months prior to the slimming down of the schedule. I have a similar joke: Wanted into UVa for grad school and didn't get in, but got into U of I (IL). Either way, I ended up with the same school colors - blue and orange. The two schools couldn't be more different, though!

IIRC the FWD Compass uses the 6 speed auto. I am glad I ordered mine with the manual.

You have some advance intel you'd like to share? - - - - - California, Sequoia, circa 1910 ~

Reminds of the door handle placement on the '70-71 Continental. Having the rear door handle above the front one always looks awkward from some angles.

Yeah, it's one of my go-to local Italian places. Also went to their clam bake last fall and Thanksgiving brunch. Very tasty food. Their pasta sauces are available in the local groceries also.

What is so, SO frustrating about it is that they have all the pieces needed to make good stuff. They have turbo engines, and manual transmissions, and whatnot, they just limit them to 2-3 cars. It's beyond stupid. They are resting on their laurels now just like 90's Domestic brands and mid-late 00's Toyota.

Ford made $8.4B in profit last year; Lincoln could sell 1000/mnth and FoMoCo would be just fine. Only American brands are held to this unyielding white hot spotlight on 'volume'. Put another way; guess how many cars Lincoln sold the first year of their iconic, oft-emulated, suicide-doored styling tour de'force (1961) : 25,164 units.

Hopefully, one day very soon, that number will be zero.

Plastic on the rear bumper yeah, not all over the place. The Q5 has way less plastic on it than an XT4. And if Cadillac has an exclusive 4 cylinder (which is sort of a waste of R&D dollars unless it runs super quiet or something) why does it make less power than an Chevy 4-cylinder? Cadillac has 258 lb-ft at 1,500 rpm? Mercedes GLC makes 273 lb-ft at 1,300 - 4,000 rpm BMW X3 makes 258 lb- ft at 1,450 - 4,800 rpm Audi Q5 273 lb-ft at 1,600 - 4,500 rpm Not surprised by who has the most torque at the lowest RPM

True, good thing someone is the BEST at doing that.